Bagram Airfield

History

Bagram Airfield (BAF), also known as Bagram Air Base (IATA: OAI, ICAO: OAIX), is located 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It was owned and operated by the country's Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient town of Bagram at an elevation of 1,492 metres (4,895 ft) above sea level, the air field has two concrete runways. The main one measures 3,602 by 46 metres (11,819 ft × 151 ft), capable of handling large military aircraft, including the Lockheed Martin C-5 Galaxy. The second runway measures 2,953 by 26 metres (9,687 ft × 85 ft). The air field also has at least three large hangars, a control tower, numerous support buildings, and various housing areas. There are also more than 13 hectares (32 acres) of ramp space and five aircraft dispersal areas, with over 110 revetments.

Bagram Airfield was built by the Soviet Union in the 1950s. Bagram Air Field was formerly the largest U.S. military base in Afghanistan, staffed by the United States Army Garrison (USAG) under the command of United States Forces - Afghanistan (USFOR-A) with major tenants such as the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing of the U.S. Air Force, along with rotating units of other U.S. and coalition forces. It was expanded and modernized by the Americans. There is also a U.S. Army hospital with 50 beds, three operating theatres and a modern dental clinic. Kabul International Airport is located approximately 40 km (25 mi) south of Bagram, connected by two separate roads.

Text from Wikipedia: Bagram Airfield, CC BY-SA 4.0, lightly trimmed.

Key dates

1. 1959
   In 1959, a year after Afghan Prime Minister Daud Khan toured the United States, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower landed at Bagram Airfield where he was greeted by King Zahir Shah and Daud Khan among other Afghan officials.
2. 2002
   It was reported that "Bagram came under daily rocket attack" in 2002 even though most of these attacks went unreported by the press.
3. 2005
   In 2005, the number of anti-American militants held at Bagram was 450, but began increasing then.
4. 2007
   27 February 2007: A suicide bombing at the outer gate of the base left at least 23 people dead and injured 20 others.
5. 2008
   21 October 2008: A United States Navy P-3 Orion reconnaissance and intelligence aircraft overshot the runway while landing.
6. 2009
   Eight reported sexual assaults occurred at the base in 2009 involving Airmen; the U.S. Army's sexual assault response team reported treating 45 victims in 2009.
7. 2015
   21 December 2015: A suicide bomber on a motorcycle killed 6 U.S. troops in an attack near the base.
8. 2021
   As part of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, after nearly 20 years of continuous U.S. presence at the site, the Bagram Air Base was secretly evacuated by the U.S. during the night on 1 July 2021 and de facto handed back to the Afghan government on 2 July 2021.
9. 2024
   On 14 August 2024, the Taliban celebrated the three-year anniversary of their victory against the United States and Western powers at Bagram Airfield.

Dates and events quoted from the same Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Records that place someone at this base

A base history doesn't name everyone who served. These records do:

• Morning reports (include Army Air Forces units)
• Search Army and AAF morning reports, 1912–1946 (National Archives Catalog)
• Air Force organizational records and lineage (AFHRA)

More history

• Wikipedia: Bagram Airfield